Distillation of wood.



No- 806,606. PATENTED DEC. 5, 1905.

E. B. WEED.

- DISTILLATION 0P Wow. 7 I APPLICATION TILED FEB. 15} 1901. BEHEWBD APR. 10, 1905.

. Inventor: EOLWWL B. .W xd

UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE. EDWARD B. WEED, 0E oLEvELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR To WEED DISTIL- LING AND MANUFACTURING ooMPANY, or NEW YORK, Y., A GOR- PORATION OF NEW YORK.

DISTILLATION OF WOOD.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 5, 1905.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, EDWAR B. WEED, a citizen of the United States, residingat Cleveland, in the county of Ouyahoga and State of Ohio, have'invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Distillation of Wood, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates particularly to cutting or otherwise preparing resinous wood so that a large surface area may be acted upon by a liquid bath of rosin or similar material in which thev wood may be wholly-or partly immersed in order to extract the turpentine and similar'desired products therefrom.

In the drawings, Figure 1 representsa block of Wood, showing the cuts or recesses made from one side. Fig. 2 is a cross-section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 represents a block of wood in which the cuts are made from opposite sides. Fig. 4 is a cross-section on the line 4 4 of Fig.3. Fig. 5 is a'plan View showing how the wood may be piled when placed in a still.

The wood is first divided into blocks a, from one to eight feet in length, having any desired thickness, preferably, however, being from three to twelve inches thick. The blocks are sawed crosswise of the grain to form cuts or slots 6 therein, that extend within a-short distance of the opposite edge of the block. These cuts are made so that the length of the sections 0 will be greater than the thickness of the uncut portion of the block and are made at suitable distances apart, preferably from one to three inches. If desired,-the cuts may be made from opposite sides of the block, as shown in Fig. 3. The sections are held together by the uncut portion of the block and can therefore be easily handled. As the length of the sections is greater than the width of the uncut portion, a number of blocks can be piled on top of each other in a still, as shown in Fig. 5, without interposing means to hold same apart. The wood thus' prepared and placed in the still is covered by a bath having a higher boiling-point than the desired product to be obtained and is distilled. The bath which is at present employed for this purpose consists of rosin.

It has been observed that the desirable prod ucts, such as turpentine, exude from the pores of the wood, and by making cuts or slots therein, as above described, the area subjected to the action of a bath in which the wood may be immersed is greatly increased and the largest possible number of pores of the wood are exposed. The slots permit a bath such as described to circulate freely and come into contact with the exposed surfaces, although the blocks may be piled on top of each other to a considerable height. As the sections are held together by the uncut portion of the blocks, the wood can be handled more easily than otherwise is possible, and therefore can be handled at less expense. This method of preparing the wood also obviates the necessity of interp'osing means to hold the sections apart in order that the surfaces of the seccrosswise of the grain, immersing the slotted blocks in a bath the boiling-point of which is higher than the product to be obtained, and distilling the same.

2. The improvement in the distillation of Wood which consists in slotting blocks of wood crosswlse of the grain, immersing the slotted blocks in'a bath of rosin, and distilling the same.

In testimony whereof I sign this application,

'tions maybe subjected to the action of the in the presence of two witnesses, this 26th day I of January, 1901.

EDWARD B. WEED.

Witnesses:

G. B. SIDDALL, -L. S. LoMMAssoN.' 

